It's So Hard
by likefallingstars
Summary: Landon and Jamie and what happens along the road. One Shot.


Disclaimer: Don't look at me. It's not mine. In fact, this is a pale comparison to the work of Nicholas Sparks, Adam Shankman, and everyone who worked on the movie. Oh man. That makes me sound like Plato.

A/N: As stated in the summary, I can't mention much as it would give away the element of surprise. But I will warn you that there is a possibility of you needing to have tissues handy.

* * *

This was it. This was one of the last days he would see her. Landon breathed in deeply. It was all he could do to keep from crying. Landon moved forward to the door, opened it, and stepped inside. He turned left and entered a second room. In it was Jamie. His Jamie. His beautiful Jamie looking even more peaceful than ever. He took one shaky step forward. And another. And yet another before he was standing right in front of her.

Landon slowly knelt down in front of the open casket. Jamie lay inside, looking as if she was merely sleeping. But he knew better. He knew it was impossible for her to be asleep, for she had died two days ago. Laying his forehead on the side of the casket, Landon let silent tears of sadness and grief fall. At the moment he was the only person in the funeral home, but more would be coming soon.

A few minutes later, Jamie's father, Reverend Sullivan, arrived. He quickly greeted Landon and paid his respects to his daughter. At two o'clock, more people started arriving. Landon didn't know many of them, so he just stood there as Reverend Sullivan greeted them all. So far he had been pretty good. He hadn't cried since he got there.

About twenty minutes in, Landon's mother arrived. She paid her respects and then hugged her son, who had tears beginning to form in his eyes. As Landon hugged his mother, his lip quavered slightly, but he managed to curb his emotions. The minutes passed and Landon greeted relatives he hadn't seen in a while.

It was 3 o'clock when Landon's friends arrived. He greeted everyone except for Eric. When Eric stood in front of his friend, he looked right into Landon's eyes, seeing every emotion hidden there. Landon felt his barriers breaking as Eric read him like a book. Before he knew what had happened, Landon collapsed into his best friend's embrace and began sobbing. He cried for himself, he cried for everyone there, he cried for anyone who had ever lost a loved one. But most of all he cried for Jamie.

Simply thinking about how she was gone forever made him cry even harder. Sobs wracked his body and he gasped for air. Eric consoled his troubled friend as best he could, but he knew there wasn't much he could do to help. "It will be okay, man," Eric whispered to Landon as his sobs began to subside. He felt Landon shake his head.

When Landon finally pulled away, he looked at Eric with swollen eyes. "Thanks, Eric," he whispered so quietly that he was barely heard. As Eric moved to sit with everyone else, Landon looked around the room. It was exactly like it had been at their wedding. Everyone Jamie knew was there. Plus Landon's family and close friends, including his father. He was standing over by his mother and must have arrived when Landon had been crying. Seeing him made even more tears spill over. He would never forget what his father had done for Jamie. Never.

It was now four o'clock. Reverend Sullivan stood up to make a speech about Jamie. He got up slowly and stood in front of the congregation. "My daughter, Jamie," he began, "was the most wonderful person I knew. After my wife died, I was so stricken with grief. I couldn't look at Jamie for days because she reminded me of her mother. But then I realized that she was the only thing that I had left to remind me. I always kept her so close in fear of what might happen to her. Only recently did I learn to let her go, if only a little. But I knew I was sending her into the right hands for her final days with us." He paused for a second as if considering what he was going to say next. "And those capable hands belong to Landon Carter, her husband." When he heard this, new tears began falling from Landon's eyes. "If I may ask, would you please come up and say a few words, Landon?"

Landon felt like he couldn't object. Shakily standing, Landon took the place of Reverend Sullivan. He wiped the tears from his eyes with the back of his hands. Taking in a deep breath, Landon spoke.

"I knew Jamie almost my whole life. But I never really knew her. Not until senior year. This year, I, uh…_managed_ to get the lead in the school play. Since then, I spent more and more time with Jamie and fell in love with her. And she, in turn, fell in love with me. And then she told me she was sick." Tears began leaking from Landon's eyes. "I couldn't believe it. I did so much for her, and then I finally asked her to marry me. We married in the church where her mother grew up, just like she wanted. These past few months were filled with more love than a lot of people have in a lifetime.

"And now that she's gone…" Landon's breathing became uneven. He couldn't finish his sentence. A couple of people gasped as he sunk to the ground crying. He was slightly surprised, because he didn't think that he had any tears left. Reverend Sullivan hastily stood. Landon's parents rushed forward to help him stand.

They led Landon back to his chair and comforted him. Landon's father pulled him into a loving hug and let his son cry into his shirt. One of the people who worked at the funeral home then stood and told everyone that they could leave and come back the next morning at 8 for the funeral service.

* * *

A/N: There you have it. I may or may not post the funeral. It depends on the reviews. So review and tell me what you think. I hope it made you sad. Or at least cry. I mean, _if _anyone even reads this. I really hope you liked it! 


End file.
